Gods and Devils

Disclaimer: I own nothing (unfortunately); all rights and characters in this fic belong to Toho Studios, Legendary Pictures, and other respective owners and creators. I gain no profit from this; it's purely for fun. I only own my OC characters.

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Prologue

'And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and he that sat upon him, his name was Death, and Hell followed with him. And there, power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with famine, and with the plagues, and with the beasts of the earth.

And if they shall say unto thee: Whither shall we go forth? Thou shalt say to them: Thus saith the Lord: Such as are for death, to death: and such as are to the sword, to the sword: and such as are for famine, to famine: and such as are to captivity, to captivity.'

Miki Saegusa bolted upright from her bed, panting erratically as the horrors of her nightmare drifted into obscurity. She cupped her forehead, wiping away the layer of sweat that had built up and tried to remember her dream.

After a while, her heart was no longer racing a mile a minute, however, even with her gift, she couldn't piece together the fragments of her dream. Her mind felt temporarily broken before all seemed well once more. Sealing her lips, she breathed slowly and softly through her nose. Resting her back against the headboard of the bed, she stared up at the ceiling shrouded in darkness. Her eyes quickly glanced over to the only source of light in the room. The digital clock projected onto the wall showed it was still ten minutes until she was to be awoken.

''Might as well start early,'' She thought. ''Keep my mind occupied.''

She lifted the bed covers away and stepped onto the ground. The moment her feet touched the cool flooring, a circle of light rushed throughout the room and illuminated it with a brilliant blue light. Miki's eyes shut briefly and stayed that way until she was used to it. A waft of cool air sprayed from openings in the walls, chilling her bare body and sending a chill down her spine. The cogs in her mind turned and clicked, making everything seem slow and numb.

Once she stepped away from her bed, the wall behind it opened up and the furniture moved inside and out of the way before the opening sealed shut and the room was empty but for her.

With a roll of her stiff neck, followed by a satisfying clicking sound, she marched over to the far side of the wall and pressed her hand onto it. An invisible scanner read her prints, matching them correctly and projecting a green light. Another opening appeared, but this time, something emerged out of it. Miki took the long-sleeve, skin-tight garment and put it on. The smooth material clung to her body easily, as if it were her own skin.

The material was grey and fitted her from the neck down to her ankles. A single blank line ran along the chest with her name proudly displayed. She felt her body tingle and she shivered as her muscles reacted to the material. Already, it felt like firecrackers were setting off inside of her brain. Even before training, her mind was being exercised. It was a weapon that needed to be used at any time whenever she was awake. She couldn't afford to slack off.

She approached the corner of the room and without even a verbal or physical command, a door opened for her and she was free to head to the training room before anyone else.

After wandering through the corridors of their base, never escaping the greeting of staff members rushing around or the cameras hanging from every corner. Hundreds of voices and thousands of eyes were always on her, and even when they weren't, her mind made it feel like they were. She'd hoped that she could train herself to gain better control of her mental state, to stop the voices from leaking inside and filling her head with constant thought and streams of consciousness.

She found one of the treadmills waiting for her. She hopped on and took hold of a headset that rested on the front. Unstrapping it, she wrapped it around her head, tucking her short hair underneath to make sure there was no interference. Her mind buzzed wildly when the machine turned on and she began at a slow pace to start things off.

Only after a few seconds, her body felt like it was ready to crumble. There was no problem with running. She could give Olympian sprinters a run for their money, literally. However, this was as much a mental test as it was a physical one. A scanner on view at the front of the machine displayed her brain waves, showing her readings to be wild and erratic, the opposite of what she was hoping for. As the machine increased the speed, Miki ran faster and worked harder to concentrate.

''First to rise, first to fall, soldier!'' A voice bellowed, catching Miki's attention.

The voice was recognisable so she didn't turn to confront the individual approaching her. ''I won't fall this time, Sergeant!'' She grunted back with a harsh breath.

An amused chuckle caused Miki's stomach to churn and fanned the flames inside her further. She wanted to prove herself this time, but no matter how well she did with breaking into a full sprint, her mind couldn't be eased. The readings spiralled further and further out of control. She focused on freeing her mind and attempting to empty out all other distractions, including the taunts coming from her superior officer. ''You give the same response every time, Saegusa. But it's always the same result. Tell me why today will be different?'' He challenged.

Miki kept her lips sealed and charged forward with all her might until the treadmill was powering at full speed. She knew that this was part of the test. He was trying to catch her out and distract her, but she wouldn't falter. She couldn't. Things were beginning to take a turn for the worst soon. Her vision went blurry and her head began to ache. It was impossible for her to keep her mind under control.

Towards the other end of the training room, the windows started to rattle and shake, threatening to break at any moment.

''Stand down, soldier.'' The Sergeant bellowed.

For a split second, it looked like Miki would obey his command, but she shook her head and kept running. ''I can control this. I can!'' She claimed…no, pleaded. At this point, it felt like the only person she was trying to convince was herself.

Red lights blared from the treadmill, indicating that her mental state was too far-gone, there was no way for her to control herself. The room began to quake. All Miki could hear was a low rumble growing louder and louder until a hand slammed on the controls of the treadmill and shut it down.

Miki panted heavily, slowing herself until the machine came to a full stop. Her legs felt like a fire, while her brain felt like a raging inferno. Using the arms of the machine to keep her balance, she bowed her head and watched sweat pour from her flustered face. Droplets hit the floor like rain as she kept herself down, both to catch her breath and to also avoid the inevitable onslaught of abuse on the way from the Sergeant. ''I thought…'' She started.

''You thought!'' He hissed. The growl in his tone was enough to keep her silent for the moment. ''That's your problem, Saegusa. You think too much. Of all the cadets at Thunder Ops, you are the most unsteady and unreliable.''

''I can learn.'' She defended.

''I doubt that, especially since you failed to obey a direct order just now. If I hadn't intervened, you would have had to explain to the Major why one of our training rooms is in shambles, and you know that I am a heavenly saint compared to him.''

Feeling the frustration and anger build up inside, Miki ripped the headset off and thumped it on the treadmill before confronting him face-to-face. He stood taller than her, with a chiselled face expression and body shape that looked as if sculpted by the Gods. He was a man who pushed himself to physical perfection. Miki was no lightweight, but she could never out-muscle the man should a fist fight ever come about. That didn't stop her from getting her point across. ''Isn't this the point of it all? I'm going to be in situations far worse out there in combat.''

''The difference is that when you're out there, one screw-up can lead to the death of one of the men, women or other taking part in this operation…''

''Taking part or indoctrinated?'' She snarled without considering the consequences of her words.

He didn't say anything immediately, opting to fold his arms behind his back. Miki mimicked his actions and stood rooted to the spot with her chin raised up while he circled her. ''I would have thought you would be happy to be here. You have the one thing everyone wants at the moment…a way to fight back against the monsters that crawl out of the seas and flatten cities.''

''That's the point, sir!'' She addressed. ''I'm not out there. I'm stuck here, hidden away and out of the battle.''

''Because unless you learn to control your abilities, you're as much of a danger to human lives as the monsters are.''

That particular criticism cut deep. She could practically feel the blade twist inside the pit of her stomach at being compared to the monsters.

Her mind got the better of her once more, projecting images in her thoughts that were so convincing, she believed for a moment that she was standing in the wreckage of a destroyed building. She could practically choke on the ash and feel the crumbling rubble beneath her feet. But the worse feeling of all was the heat, the heat that emanated from the creature standing in the distance and looking down upon her with little regard. It was like a human watching an ant, it was overpowering. Miki saw those blistering, burning eyes. The eyes of a monster…of a king…

She gulped and returned to reality, almost becoming lost in her thoughts. Her superior noticed this and had further evidence to back his stance. ''You need better control and discipline. Because as long as I consider you a liability rather than an asset, you will never leave this base! Am I clear?''

It physically and mentally hurt her when she forced a nod. ''I do, sir.''

''Good,'' He said sternly before turning to leave. ''Clean up and leave. The First Class Privates will be here soon to train. I don't want you breaking anything before they arrive.''

Miki gritted her teeth and clenched her fists. She must have some willpower because it was so easy for her to snap at any moment and crush him against the wall with her gift. However, in the end, she knew that he was only trying to get the best out of her. She knew that Thunder Ops needed as many gifted soldiers as they could find.

In a world filled with Gods and Monsters, mortals had to step up and advance if they didn't want to burn in the aftermath.

To Be Continued…

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